HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: WW-P South hopes to erase years of bad CVC memories

It seems you just have to mention the name Middletown South to anyone who has followed Colonial Valley Conference football for years and it brings up nothing but bad memories.

Friday night, Todd Smith and his 8-1 West Windsor-Plainsboro South Pirates are determined to change that.

The Pirates, who return to the NJSIAA’s Central Jersey IV playoffs as a No. 2 seed, have drawn Steve Antonucci’s Lions from Lincroft as their opening- round opponent.

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One of five CVC teams to make the playoffs, WW-P South will be the first to see action when they host 5-3 Middletown South in a 7 p.m. kickoff at Pirate Field in Princeton Junction.

The four other CVC teams in the postseason — Allentown and Nottingham in C.J. II, Steinert in C.J. IV and Notre Dame in Non-Public A — are all in action on Saturday. No. 1 seed Allentown (8-1) hosts Ocean Township (4-3-1) at 7 p.m., Nottingham (7-1) is home to face Manasquan (4-4) at 1 p.m., Steinert (5-3) travels to play Colts Neck (7-1) at 1 p.m. and Notre Dame (6-2) heads to North Jersey for a 1 p.m. kickoff against Bergen Catholic (5-3) at 1 p.m.

What makes the WW-P South/Middletown South matchup so intriguing is what the Lions have done to CVC teams in the post-season.

A nine-time sectional champ, Middletown South has 39 all-time postseason wins in the 23 years it’s been to the NJSIAA playoffs. It’s posted 13 of those wins against CVC teams, the last two coming in 2010 when it beat Steinert (35-8) then Hamilton (21-13) to lead the way to Rutgers, where it lost to Freehold Boro for the title.

The perennial Shore Conference power, which produced 12-0 seasons in 2001, ‘03, ‘04 and ‘05, when it was the state’s No. 1 team, Middletown South has made a habit of ruining the playoff dreams of countless CVC teams.

Like the 9-0 Hamilton team the Lions beat (30-13) in the 1998, the 2001 Hornet team that lost at home to South (21-14) after leading until early in the fourth period, Craig Wood’s 2002 Ewing squad that lost at home (19-13 in overtime), and Harold Beatty’s unbeaten 1990 Trenton team that went to the field South fans call “the Swamp” and lost in the state final, 15-14, even though those on the sideline swear to this day Terrance Stokes got in twice on runs from the 2-yard line.

Those are just bitter memories for CVC football fans who are pulling for Brian Schoenauer, Andrew Manley, Tom Efstathios, Nick Benfer and their teammates to finally send the Lions back to Monmouth County with a loss to a CVC team.

It won’t be easy to do.

Smith has the Lions well-scouted and expects them to pack the box in hopes of shutting down Mercer County’s all-time leading running back, Schoenauer, who goes into the game with 4,832 career yards, and 1,478 of them plus 27 touchdowns this season.

Smith knows the 4-4 front Antonucci will use in hopes of shutting down Schoenauer may be the toughest WW-P South has encountered yet. “They send someone on every play, sometimes six or seven depending on the situation,” says Smith, who is making his seventh trip to the playoffs in his eight years as head coach. It’s the sixth time WW-P South opens with a home game.

“The key for us will be our linemen staying on their blocks long enough for Brian to get going,” says Smith.

That means the Pirates will need a big night from the likes of Mitch Ngai, Diego Cutino, Erik Davis and Frank DeMilt in the trenches to find the seams that Schoenauer can bust through and possibly start one of his patented runs to the end zone.